In Review: Lantana (2001)
~ The BigPond Adelaide Film Festival has begun, and I for one, am delighted. For the past several Film Festivals, I have been meaning to immerse myself in cinema for the 10 days of the event, but for various reason, mostly to do with work and money, I haven’t been able to. Now that I am ‘retired’, I have enough time and money to hopefully see between 10 and 15 films.
Unfortunately, I missed the opening on Thursday night, and didn’t see anything Friday either – so much for immersing myself in movies!
Yesterday however, I caught my first film, an encore screening of the stunning Australian movie, Lantana.
Directed by Ray Lawrence, working from a screenplay by Andrew Bovell, Lantana is a tour de force of Australian film making. Every major actor in the film gives a great performance, especially the female leads, Kerry Armstrong, Rachel Blake, Barbara Hershey and Daniella Farinacci.
The lead males are just as good. Anthony LaPaglia, Geoffrey Rush, and Vince Colosimo give top performances, and all the above are ably supported by Leah Purcell, Peter Phelps and Glenn Robbins. Even the child actors are good.
So what is it about this film that helped it scoop award after award?
The tag line for the film, ‘Sometimes love isn't enough’, gives a clue to the drama unfolding before the viewer. Relationships are put under a microscope so powerful, that nothing is able to escape its unwavering focus.
The film dissects in intimate detail the consequences of infidelity, lack of trust, and poor communication in human relationships – marriages in particular. Apart from the characters of Nick and Paula Daniels (Vince Colosimo and Daniella Farinacci), who are happy and secure in their partnership, all the other adult characters are either hiding something from their partners, or finding it difficult – if not down right impossible – to express their true feelings to each other.
Great dialogue shines throughout. Long pauses between short passages of conversation leave the viewer squirming as they watch these intensely human characters come apart before our eyes.
Dialogue: Leon Zat, (after admitting he’d had an affair): I f-cked up, all right? People f-ck up.
Sonja Zat: Really? Well, I don't. You know what's so easy, Leon? It's so easy to go out and find somebody. You know what's hard? What's hard is not to.
You might have noticed I haven’t even mentioned the plot yet. That’s because the plot, as interesting as it is, is merely the catalyst for the real drama taking place between all the couples and individuals in this complex interwoven masterpiece.
There is so much to recommend repeated viewings of this film. The incredible understated performances of Kerry Armstrong and Rachel Blake in particular, should have propelled them both onto the international spotlight. Why it hasn’t is a continuing mystery to me. Maybe they are just too good for Hollywood! Or maybe they simply haven’t been presented with scripts that allow them to work with honesty and intelligence in an industry that often has no place for either.
If you have missed this film, rent, buy, beg or borrow Lantana now, and give yourself over to its power and mastery. I guarantee it will leave you contemplating the openness and honest of your own relationships in a way you may have never done before.
Definitely, five stars out of five from me.
Unfortunately, I missed the opening on Thursday night, and didn’t see anything Friday either – so much for immersing myself in movies!
Yesterday however, I caught my first film, an encore screening of the stunning Australian movie, Lantana.
Directed by Ray Lawrence, working from a screenplay by Andrew Bovell, Lantana is a tour de force of Australian film making. Every major actor in the film gives a great performance, especially the female leads, Kerry Armstrong, Rachel Blake, Barbara Hershey and Daniella Farinacci.
The lead males are just as good. Anthony LaPaglia, Geoffrey Rush, and Vince Colosimo give top performances, and all the above are ably supported by Leah Purcell, Peter Phelps and Glenn Robbins. Even the child actors are good.
So what is it about this film that helped it scoop award after award?
The tag line for the film, ‘Sometimes love isn't enough’, gives a clue to the drama unfolding before the viewer. Relationships are put under a microscope so powerful, that nothing is able to escape its unwavering focus.
The film dissects in intimate detail the consequences of infidelity, lack of trust, and poor communication in human relationships – marriages in particular. Apart from the characters of Nick and Paula Daniels (Vince Colosimo and Daniella Farinacci), who are happy and secure in their partnership, all the other adult characters are either hiding something from their partners, or finding it difficult – if not down right impossible – to express their true feelings to each other.
Great dialogue shines throughout. Long pauses between short passages of conversation leave the viewer squirming as they watch these intensely human characters come apart before our eyes.
Dialogue: Leon Zat, (after admitting he’d had an affair): I f-cked up, all right? People f-ck up.
Sonja Zat: Really? Well, I don't. You know what's so easy, Leon? It's so easy to go out and find somebody. You know what's hard? What's hard is not to.
You might have noticed I haven’t even mentioned the plot yet. That’s because the plot, as interesting as it is, is merely the catalyst for the real drama taking place between all the couples and individuals in this complex interwoven masterpiece.
There is so much to recommend repeated viewings of this film. The incredible understated performances of Kerry Armstrong and Rachel Blake in particular, should have propelled them both onto the international spotlight. Why it hasn’t is a continuing mystery to me. Maybe they are just too good for Hollywood! Or maybe they simply haven’t been presented with scripts that allow them to work with honesty and intelligence in an industry that often has no place for either.
If you have missed this film, rent, buy, beg or borrow Lantana now, and give yourself over to its power and mastery. I guarantee it will leave you contemplating the openness and honest of your own relationships in a way you may have never done before.
Definitely, five stars out of five from me.
Labels: Adelaide Film Festival, Anthony LaPaglia, Australia, Barbara Hershey, BigPond, Daniella Farinacci, Geoffrey Rush, Kerry Armstrong, Lantana, Leah Purcell, Rachel Blake, Ray Lawrence, Vince Colosimo
posted by Jim Lesses at
1:08 PM
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